Talking about teens, high school, expectations, and guitars in the first segment of YatPundit’s Pub 25-April-2019.
YatPundit’s Pub 25-April-2019
I’m in-between books in a sense at the moment. I finished the Rebus novel, but not ready to do a full review of it. I started Mitch Landrieu’s book, but not into it enough to talk sensibly about it. So, there wasn’t much to go into with respect to my personal reading. I thought we’d talk about two writing themes.
Teen expectations
Progressive Guitar Studio on Canal Blvd.
Tweens entering eighth grade, particularly here in New Orleans, have interesting expectations. As they approach their senior year, however, things change. Parents foster expectations. Therefore, a dad who was on the football team in high school wants his kid to play that sport. Maybe the young man wants to wrestle, or run cross country, or (heaven forbid!) join the Debate Team! Some kids will start out doing what the parents push, move on.
Some expectations are more subtle. So, an eighth grader may start in marching band. By tenth grade, kids with a lot of talent “outgrow” the school band. They join after-school orchestras, bands, and other projects (like musical theater). Conflict arises when they do less for the school. Then there are the musicians who, while they enjoy their horn or wind instrument, want to play guitar or bass. They invest in lessons and practice, putting aside growth on the band instrument. It’s called growing up.
Trains!
The old Louisville and Nashville passenger terminal on Canal Street
I’m a train nut. Y’all know that, I’m sure. As old passenger cars from the 1940s and 1950s die off, we lose a part of mid-century culture. I want to write about those railroad days. So, a story arc about a Pullman Porter in 1940-1941 interests me. Europe is already at war, but the US hasn’t made the move to actual combat. Spies and intrigue abound! I keep seeing an African-American man who wants to defend his country in a unique way.
The Pullman Porters of West Oakland
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